Platen printing-machine.



No. 842,362 PATENTEDJAN. 29, 1907. F. WAITE. PLATBN PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.12.1905.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 842,362. PATENTED JAN. 29, 1907. F. WAITE.

PLATEN PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 12. 1905.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

No. 842,362. PATENTED JAN. 29, 1907.

F. WAITB. PLATBN PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLIOATION FILED SEPT.-12,1905.

3 SHEETSSHBET 3.

FRED WAITE, OF OTLEY, ENGLAND.

PLATEN PRINTINGMACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 29, 1907.

Application filed September 12, 1905- Rerial No. 278,156.

To all whom it may concer t:

Be it known that I, ERED WArrn, a subject ofthe King of Great Britain,residing at Otl'cy, in the county of York, England, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Platen Printing-Machines, and ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to platen-machines for printing envelops; and myobject is to provide such machines with an adjustable envelop-containerbox applicable for the reception of envelo'ps of various sizes, meansfor automatically feeding the envelo s singly from the saidcontainer-box onto t to feedplate, and means for automatically iofl'ltheimpression should the feed mechanism he arrangement and combination ofdevices constituting my invention will be understood by describing thesame with referonce to the accompanying sheets of draw- .i'ngs, forming.which similar corresponding where1n 4 Figure Lisa part-sectional sideelevation of such parts of a laten printing-machine as are necessary toi lustrate the application of a part of this specification, in numbersof reference indicate parts in each of the figures,

- my improvements, and Fig 2 is a plan of the same. Fig. 3is asectionahsidc elevation illustrating the fced'mechamsm taking an envelofrom the CODt&1I10IbUX,.&T1(l Fig. 4 is 1 a simi ar view illustratingthcfeed mechan- 4,) and into i this box the enve Figs. 5 and 6 placed sideby side with the flap si e of each ism in the delivery position. arerespectively a sectional side elevation and front end elevation of theenvelop-com taincr box .detached from the Fig. 7 is a detail view drawnto an enlarged scale.

In the drawings, 1 are the side frames of the machine, 2 is thefeed-plate provided with lifting end stops 3 3, 4 is the rockin rshaftcarrylng the swln ing platen 5, provider with'a gri per 6, all oflinown construction! 7 is'an oscillating arm carryin a reciprocating bar8, formed with a shou der 9, with which a weighted detent-lever '10, astud 11', may .be caused to engage to stop the movement of the bar 8 andcause a roller 12 on the arm 7 to engage an inclined tappetarm and turnan eccentric-shaft carrying the irfipression-sufliciently to throw offthe imression by simply reversing the pivoted andle 13, so as to depressthe detent-lever 10 in the ordinary way. The, adjustableenvelop-container box 0011- throwing to deliver an envelop onto thefeed-plate.

machine, and

pivoted on I -sists\oi' a main cross-rail,14, fixed on the side eabh endthereof,

; frames '1 of the machine at the front end thereof, which cross-rail 14carries on its under side abridge-piece 15,ai1ljustable throughthumb-screws 15,, while depending pillars 16 16 are fixed to the saidcross-rail 14, one at which pillars have their lower ends connected by across-stay 17, to l which latter is fixed a-stop or rest 18, whichpasses upwardly in front of theforemost envelop, and on the pillars 1G16 a verticallyadjustable base-rail 19 is provided carrying twooutwardly-projccting L-shapcd brackcts 20 '20, which latter areadjustable horizontally to and away from each other on the saidbase-rail 19, while to the foiemost ed es of the L-shaped bracltcts 2H20 vertical adjustable plates 21 21 are attached. employing thisconstruction of container box the L-shaped brackets 20 20 may be adjusted toor away from each other to suit the width of the envclops to bereceived, and by adjusting the base-rail 19 on the pillars 16 16 to oraway flpm the bridge-piece 15 the depth of the box may also be ad 'ustedto suit the depth of the envelo s to he container: therein, while theverticall -ad j ustable plate... 21 21 may be set at the mostsuitableheight to support the foremost envelo The envelop-container boxust described is inclined or set at an angle to the side frames 1 of themachine, (see F envelop toward the address side.'of the envelop in frontof it. The envclo s 22 in the box fall b avity against the xed stop orrest 18, waigi flap of the foremost envelop, while the upper edges ofthe envelops are located beneath the bridge-piece 15.

The automatic envelop-feed mechanism consists of a'pair; of sprin yfingers 23 23, carried on an arm 24, attac ed to the vibrating orswinging platenfi; which platen moves the said fingers 23 23 in an arcof a circle, so that the said fi ers 23 23 are made to slide up againstthe ap side of the foremost e1 1-' velop 22, situated in thecontainer-box, and pass beneath-the flap on each side of the stop orrest 18. The springy fingcrs 23 23 are as the said fingers 23 23 move inan arc of a circle they draw the to edge of the envelop engaged clear ofthe bridge-piece 15 and then pass the said envelop forward. Above thegs. 1,3, and

s 22 are bears against the center of theeach provided with astiffening-piece 25, and

platen 5 and located on the feed-plate a prcsser-lingers 26 26 areemployed to bear upon the fed envelop and retain it in pos1 tion on thefeed-plate 2 until laid hold of by the gripper 6, which carries it awayto be printed.

\Vhen the platen 5 is in the up position, the lingers 23 23 are in thedown position up against the lie p side of the foremost envelop, withtheir upf er ends innnediately below the edges of the ap of the envelop,(see Fig. 3,) and on the platen 5 swinging into the down position thelingers .23 23 are moved upward in an arc of a circle, which action hasthe ell'ect of causing the lingers 23 23 to pass beneath the llap of theforemost envelop, draw the top edge of the said. envelop clear of thebridge-piece 15, and carry such envelop forward onto the feed-plate 2,up against the stops 3 3, and beneath the presser-lingers 26 26, (seeFigs. 2 and 4,) which lingers 26 26 bear upon and retain the fed envelopuntil i is laid hold of by the gripper 6 of the platen 5 on the latteragain swinging into the up position to carry the envelop away to beprinted. (See Fig. 3.) The rising of the platen 5 simultaneously lowersthe fingers '23 23 ready to remove the next envelop, so that theenvelops in the containenbox are fed singly and automatically onto thefeed-plate '2 with precision.

The construction of the springy fingers is clearly shown in the enlargedside elevation at Fig. 7,;in which each linger 23 is provided with astiliening-piece 25, as hereinbefore describel. By constructing thespringy lingers in this manner the fingers ZB 23 them selves arerendered exceedingly flexible, so that during their downward movementagainst the foremost envelop they yield, as shown in broken lines atFig. 7, w 1le on the said fingers 23 23 engaging the foremost cn velopto carry it forward the said fingers 23 close against=theirstiffening-pieces 2.5, as shown in"l"ull lines at Fig. 7, whereby thesaid fingers 23 23 are rendered perfectly rigid during their upwardmovement.

The automatic im )rcssion throwing ofi mechanism consists oi anupstanding bracket 27, fixed on the stud 11, on which bracket at 28 ispivoted a trigger 29, which latter is normally held in the up position(see Fig. l) by means of a spring-pin 30, carried in the bracket 27between a dependingarm of the trig or 29 and the weighted detent lever10, whi e a projecting arm of the said trigger 2Q asses between theforked end of a lever 31, provided on a rock-shaft 32, situated acrossthe machine in bearings 33, which rock-shalt 32 also carries afeeler-arm 34, extending centrally over the feed-plate 2, having itsfree end depending, so as to be capable of passing through an opening35, provided in the said plate 2. The shaft 32, carrying the forkedlever 31 and the feclcr-arin 34 just described, is rovided with apending arm 36, through t 1e medium of which the said shaft 32 is rockedby a pivoted bell-crank lever-37, operated by a cam 38, situated on adriven shaft 39 of the machine The fecler-arm 341 and forked lever 31are simultaneously lowered by reason of their own weight andsimultaneously raised through the medium of the cam 38 once for eachrevolution of the cam-shaft 39 to suit the intermittent feed of theenvelops, so that as each envelop is fed from the containerboX onto thefeed plate 2 by the sprin y lingers .23 23 of the swinging platen 5 t 1efeeier-arm 34 and forked lever 31 are simultaneously lowered, so thatthe former comes down upon and is supported by the fed onvelop, whilethe latter comes down into engagement with the trigger 29, but notsulliciently far to operate the latter, when the feeler-arm 34 andtaneously raised through the medium of the operating cam mechanism,whereby the said fcelcr-arm 3% is lifted clear of the envelop, so as toallow the latter to be carried away by the gripper 6 on the swingingplaten 5. Should the springy lingers 23 "23 fail to feed an envelop ontothe feed-plate 2, the feelerarm 34 on being lowered passrs through theopening 35 in the said plate 2, when the forked lever 3i, which issimultaneously lowered, engages with and rocks the pivoted trigger 29,which in turn through the mel (hum of the spring-pin 3U,

weighted detent-lever 10 into engagement with the shoulder 9 of thereciprocating bar 8,and so throws off the impression. After the platen 5has passed the point at which the type-bed has actually commenced to"shorten its stroke the pivoted trigger 12S) is rocked back into itsnormal position, through themedium of the spring-pin 30, by the engagingforkcd lever 31 during its next upward movement, when the said weighteddetent-lever 10 again assumes its disengaged position, and in this waythe detcnt-levcr ll) is operated so as to throw oll' the impressionautomatically each time an envelop fails to 1 be fed onto the feed-plate2.

What I claim as .my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

l. The combination with a feed-plate of a feeding device forprinting-presses comprising a container-box, a curved delivery-finger toen age the envelops between their llaps and t eir bodies arranged tolift them from the container-box, and a bridge above the container-boxto prevent more than one enl velop being deli ered at a time, the curvedl linger operating to draw the cnvelops one at i a time from underneaththe bridge as it lifts L them from their container-box.

.2. in a feeding device for printingprcsscs, the combination of acontainer-box, deliverylingers having a still' portion and a separateforked lever 31 are snnul.

depresses the I velops having flexible )ortion to engage the envelopebetween their flaps and their bodies, and a bridge to prevent more thanone envelop being delivered at a time.

3. in a platennachino for printiiig envelops having a h-ed-plate and aswinging part, the eombinatioi'l with an inclined. envelop-co11taim-rboxhaving its sides and base adjustable and being provided with a stop orrest adapted to bear against the center of the flap of the ioren'iostenvelop and having a bridge-piece located over the upper edges of theenvelop, of a pair of springy lin ers mounted on the swinging partadapted to move the said lingers in an arc of a circle to feed the envolops upwardly toward the bridge and at the same time out fromunderneath the bridge one at a time onto the feed-plate, and means forautomaticall' throwing off the impression, substantially as described.

4. In a platen-machine for printing envelops, the combination with aninclined envelop-container box consisting of a main ("rossrail 14carrying an adjustable bridgepie e 15 and being provided with dependingp l ars 16, 16 in connection with a cross-sta' 17 provided with a stopor rest 18, said pil lars l6, 16 carrying a vertically-adjustablebase-rail 19 provided with horizontally-ad justable L-shaped brackets20, 20 carrying vertically-adiostable plates 21, 21, of a pair ofsprlngy fingers mounted on the swinging platen or other part adapted tomove the said fingers in an arc of a circle to feed the envelops singlyonto the feedplate, and means for automatically throwing off theimpression, substantially as described.

5. In a platen-machine for rinting ena feed-plate and presser-fingerscooperating therewith, the combination with an inclinedenvelop-container box hav ing its sides and base adjustable and beingprovided "with a ate 1 or rest adapted to bear against the llap of t heloren'iost envelop and having a bridge-piece located over the upperedges of the envelops, of an automatic envelop-feed mechanism consistingof a pair of springy fingers 23, 23 provided with stillen- 1ngieces 25carried on an arm 24 mounted on t 1e sw nging )laten or other partadapted to move the said lingers in an arc of a circle to cause them toengage the foremost envelop, draw it clear of the l'iridge-piece andpass it forward onto the feedplate beneath presser-fingers, and meansfor automatically throwing off the impression, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a platen-rnaohine for printing onvelops havin a feed-plate, thecombination with an enveibp-oonta ner box and means for auton'iaticallyfeeding the envelops singly therefrom onto the feed-plate, of means forautomaticall throwing oil the impression consisting 08 a reciprocatingbar 8 formed with a shoulder 9, a pivoted weighted detentlever 10adapted to engage said shoulder t) on being depressed, a rock-shaft 32carrying a feeler-arm 34 adapted to pass through an opening 35 in thefeed-plate on an envelop failing to be fed onto the said plate, atrigger 29, and a forked. lever 31 on the same rock shaft 32 adapted tooperate the trig depress the detent-lever 10 into with the "houlder 9 ofthe recipmr 8, substantially as described.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set hand in the presence of twowitnesses.

FRED WAITE.

- Witnesses:

J. JoWE r'r, VANoE E. GALLOWAY.

